Patriot Act Explanation

639 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essays on how the patriot act violates our rights

In this paper I will begin to explain what the Patriot Act is with much explanation. Not only that but what events lead up to the creation and signing of the act. Furthermore, what is purpose of the Patriot Act and what the enforcement of said act it is suppose to achieve or not achieve. Next, I will begin to write about some of the provisions of the Act and the rationale behind them. Finally I will be explaining and defining the concept of civil liberties. Lastly I will conclude this paper by giving my personal opinion on whether or not the Act infringes on our personal civil liberties why and why not. After reading this paper the reader should have gained a deeper understanding on what the Patriot Act is as well as what civil liberties are. Keywords: Civil Liberties, The Patriot Act, Islamist Extremist, Constitution The Patriot Act In order to fully understand what the Patriot Act you must first know the event that lead up to the signing of the act. The said event is 9/11. “9/11" is shorthand for four coordinated terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda, an Islamist extremist group that occurred on the morning of September 11, 2001. The attacks killed 2,977 people.” The attacks on September 2001 was the main if not one of the only reasons why according to Payne (2013)” U.S Congress enacted the USA Patriot Act( pg.11) …show more content…

Those changes came about in May 2001. According to Payne (2013) following the 4 year extension of the Patriot Act it gave federal investigator access to a suspect’s materials and allowing them to conduct wiretaps of terrorist suspects. (pg.111). These provisions were put in place by the government because they believed that if they closely monitored the suspects terrorist that in return it would lower the number of events from happening but on the contraire terrorist just found alternate ways to conduct their terrorists

Show More
Related

  • Compare And Contrast Alien And Sedition Acts

    486 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Patriot Act violates many of the amendments in the Bill of Rights. The First Amendment, for example, gives American citizens freedom of speech, press, and religion. The Patriot Act allows the government to monitor the religious and political papers and institutions of citizens that are not even reasonable suspects for criminal activity. Church,

    Read More

  • American Civil Liberties: Do Americans Have Enough Protections for Civil Liberties, or Not?

    1449 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cole, D., & Dempsey, J. X. (2006). Terrorism and the constitution: sacrificing civil liberties in the name of national security. New York: New Press.

    Read More

  • Domestic Surveillance Pros And Cons

    1038 Words  | 3 Pages

    Domestic Surveillance helped combat terrorism as it had stopped attacks in the United States and overseas, and identified phone numbers that could be connected to terrorism. The way that Domestic Surveillance alerted us about potential threats is that AT&T and the NSA worked together to collect and analyze Internet and cell phone data. US citizens gained a sense of security as cyber programs began to have the same standards as international laws and standards, and telecom giants such as Verizon assist the NSA by sending them data. If we do not keep Domestic Surveillance, we are making ourselves vulnerable to more attacks as the government will not be able to foil plots that could be harmful to society. Although there is controversy surrounding Domestic Surveillance, it is best to know that there are more benefits than downsides to

    Read More

  • 2001 USA Patriot Act is Unconstitutional and Ineffective

    2102 Words  | 5 Pages

    While this act made legislative changes that increased surveillance and the investigative powers of law enforcement agencies to protect America from further terrorist acts, the passing of the USA Patriot Act has reduced the privacy rights of Americans and also does not provide for a system of checks and balances that safeguard civil liberties. Terrorism is a serious matter that should not be handled lightly, but the act has gone over the top in trying to stop terrorism. The USA Patriot Act, enacted for protecting America from further attacks, not only does little if anything to protect Americans, but rather undermines their civil rights. The Patriot Act targets not only terrorists, but also the American people which it intended to protect.

    Read More

  • The NSA, Privacy and the War or Terrorism

    1550 Words  | 4 Pages

    A short background on the laws concerning surveillance will help clear up some misconceptions on the NSA. Back in 1968, the Wiretap Act protected citizens from the government listening to their phone call...

    Read More

  • The Patriot Act vs Civil Liberties

    1016 Words  | 3 Pages

    Is the patriot act necessary if it protects but threatens our civil liberates? The patriot act threatens civil liberates. The U.S. is spying without the people’s consent. The patriot act will prevent terrorist attacks on the United States. The patriot act can be used to catch wanted criminals. The patriot act protects the people from danger but jeopardizes their civil rights.

    Read More

  • Civil Liberty vs. Security

    2180 Words  | 5 Pages

    Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the United States, once said “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” In America’s society today, some are willing to sacrifice their civil liberties in order to gain protection and security over some potential threat. Especially after the events of September 11th and several attempted bombings in U.S. cities. This sacrifice of individual freedoms such as the freedom of speech, expression, the right to information, to new technologies, and so forth, for additional protection is more of a loss than a gain. Citizens of the United States deserve equal liberty and safety overall, as someone should not have to give up one value in order to gain another. This concept of individual right goes beyond the simple idea of “individual comfort.” Personal liberties cannot be surrendered and are not to be compromised since these liberties are intangible. Individuals should not have their personal liberties exchanged for national security because individuals are guaranteed protection to these rights.

    Read More

  • The Patriot Act Protects America

    761 Words  | 2 Pages

    The U.S. Patriot Act was set in place to better serve our country against terrorism.  The U.S. Patriot Act is an Acronym for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Acts (Lithwick).  This act is to punish terrorist actions and improve law enforcement not only in the United States but also around the world. The United States Patriot Act consists of over 1,000 sections that describe the act in great detail.  The sections include, but are not limited to, the power extended to the government by The U.S. Patriot Act to deport and incarcerate non citizens. With the U.S. Patriot Act a person’s phone line can be tapped, records of any and all purchases checked, and even library records searched.  This Act also has sections to help money laundering, expand our country’s border protection, strengthening the extent of criminal laws and provide for people suffering from any type of terrorism acts (Huffman).

    Read More

  • The Balancing Act Between Freedom & Security

    1009 Words  | 3 Pages

    The USA Patriot Act came about after 9/11. The Act remains in use today with some slight modifications. On the other hand, FISA has been in use since the mid-1970s. Both Acts are highly controversial and are foreign to the average citizen. National security always requires a balancing act between freedom and security. As the saying goes, freedom is not free. This paper will describe the primary elements and / or components of the USA Patriot Act and FISA and research how the media has conveyed the main messages and elements of both acts. It will go on to discuss the media portrayal and general public perception of these acts. The paper will close with a discussion based on whether I believe the nation is more secure with these acts in place.

    Read More

  • Domestic Surveillance Persuasive Essay

    1105 Words  | 3 Pages

    The recent terrorists attacks of 9/11 has brought security to an all-time high, and more importantly brought the NSA to the limelight. Facts don 't change however, terrorist attacks are not common as history has shown. So what has domestic surveillance actually protected? There are no records to date that they have stopped any harm from being caused. If it is well known by every American that they are being watched, then why would a terrorist with the intention of harming use these devices to talk about their heinous acts? The real criminals are smarter than this, and it has shown with every attack in our history. Petty acts of crime are not what domestic surveillance should be used for. Terrorism has been happening for decades before any electronics were introduced, and even in third world countries where electronics are not accessible. The government needs a different way to locate these terrorists, rather than spy on every innocent human being. Andrew Bacevich states in his article The Cult of National Security: What Happened to Check and Balances? that until Americans set free the idea of national security, empowering presidents will continue to treat us improperly, causing a persistent risk to independence at home. Complete and total security will never happen as long as there is malicious intent in the mind of a criminal, and sacrificing freedoms for the false sense of safety should not be

    Read More

  • Patriot Act Essay

    843 Words  | 2 Pages

    September 11th 2001 was not only the day when the delicate facade of American security was shattered, but it was also the events of this day that led to the violation of the rights of millions of American citizens. After relentless reprehension by the American masses on the approach that was taken after the 9/11 attacks ,the Bush administration enacted the Patriot Act on October 26th, 2001, a mere 56 days after this tragic event.The Patriot Act expanded the authority of U.S. law enforcement agencies so that they could hopefully avert future terrorist attacks. Under the Patriot Act The NSA (National Security Agency) could entrench upon the privacy of the citizens of the U.S. without public knowledge, consent or, probable cause. The particular incident which had the general public up at arms was when the NSA illicit surveillance came to public knowledge.

    Read More

  • Essay On The Patriot Act

    2034 Words  | 5 Pages

    What is the Patriot Act? The USA PATRIOT act was signed into law quickly without much debate back in 2001 right after the September 11th attacks in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania. The Patriot Act touches almost everything from more funding for businesses that are affected by terrorist attacks all the way to funding affected families of terrorist attacks. The main reason the Patriot act was put in place was to prevent future terrorist attacks on U.S. soil and overseas attacks on Americans. With the act the government would try to stop the attacks before they take place to prevent American deaths. The Patriot Act was put in place to protect America, and at the time many agreed with the Act and went along with it. That was at first. That was when many Americans felt threatened for their safety. Now, many have had time to reflect back on the Patriot Act and feel differently (Ball 2004 p. 78-84).

    Read More

  • The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act

    2043 Words  | 5 Pages

    Domestic Surveillance Citizens feeling protected in their own nation is a crucial factor for the development and advancement of that nation. The United States’ government has been able to provide this service for a small tax and for the most part it is money well spent. Due to events leading up to the terrifying attacks on September 11, 2001 and following these attacks, the Unites States’ government has begun enacting certain laws and regulations that ensure the safety of its citizens. From the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) of 1978 to the most recent National Security Agency scandal, the government has attempted and for the most part succeeded in keeping domestic safety under control. Making sure that the balance between obtaining enough intelligence to protect the safety of the nation and the preservation of basic human rights is not extremely skewed, Congress has set forth requisites in FISA which aim to balance the conflicting goals of privacy and security; but the timeline preceding this act has been anything but honorable for the United States government.

    Read More

  • Individual Privacy versus National Security

    1933 Words  | 4 Pages

    Much has changed in our governments view on what is considered to be violations of our individual rights. The argument is not about the ideal of privacy or the ideal of security, it is about the improper use of data collected by the government that is misrepresented and improperly utilized in violation of our very own Civil Rights and Liberties. This is allowed through silver tongued legal representation sponsored by the government for the government to exercise the ability to use loopholes in the legal system. The very Supreme Court in which we entrust to make the legal and moral decisions on privacy versus security is a judge nominated by the same political system (government) that has enacted such distrust. Our forefathers warned us in their speech and tried to save us in their laws. We have failed them by our actions and with our greed.

    Read More

  • The Right to Privacy

    1421 Words  | 3 Pages

    "National Security -- Telephony Metadata Collection -- White Paper Argues Metadata Collection Is Legal Under The USA Patriot Act." Harvard Law Review 127.6 (2014): 1871-1878. Academic Search Complete. Web. 4 May 2014.

    Read More

More about Patriot Act Explanation

Open Document